An Invitation to the Hunter Academy
"I've decided to start going to a Hunter Academy prep academy from summer vacation."
"Yeah?"
"Yeah. It might be hard to hang out with you after that."
"That serious, huh?"
"Of course. I'll be spending most of the time after school there. And as entrance exams get closer, I'll probably cut back on school time too."
"Guess the school approved it."
"Yeah. They said they have high expectations for me. It's not every day a general high school sends someone to the Hunter Academy, so yeah."
Sera said it with a casual smile, like it was no big deal. She was leaving me an out, but the nuance was clear enough.
She's made up her mind.
I flashed back to middle school graduation day on the rooftop. Sera's face when she declared she was going to the Hunter Academy. It was the same expression now—she was telling me:
—We won't have time together anymore.
"……."
I hesitated for a moment.
What should I say?
Good luck? You can do it? I could say stuff like that easily enough. For Sera's sake. But that didn't feel like what she wanted to hear.
As my silence stretched on, Sera's lips kept moving.
"Actually, I could probably get into the academy without going to prep school."
"What? Then you don't need to go."
"Yeah, I could get in. But... I wouldn't get a scholarship."
Her eyes wavered just a bit as she said it. Like she lacked confidence. Like it was embarrassing to reveal this to me, Cha Sihoo.
"Our family's not well-off. Single mom, you know. Mom can't cover the Hunter Academy tuition alone."
"……."
"But I have to go to the academy. Yeah. So I need that scholarship. The academic excellence track."
"I see."
Only then did I understand why Sera sounded so resolute. With her Gift, the Hunter Academy would accept her no question. But not as a full scholarship student.
Gifts weren't that rare among applicants. And while Sera was a prodigy in our general high school, among aspiring hunters? Who knew. Her talent was top-tier, but her training volume would lag behind.
That's why the prep academy. The best way to achieve her goal.
"Truth is, I'm super nervous?"
"...Yeah?"
"Yeah. Worried if I can keep up at prep. Worried about living a totally different life from our school friends. And..."
Step. Sera took one step toward me. She looked straight into my eyes.
"...I don't want to be apart from you."
When she mentioned me, it wasn't "worried"—it was "don't want."
Step— step— step— Sera closed the distance, one deliberate step at a time. Burning with resolve. Determined to get a firm answer right here.
"So, I want to be with you."
"Do what?"
"I want to go to the academy together. Prep for entrance exams together. ...Spend time together."
And finally, she stood right in front of me. My reflection in her red eyes—
A face full of hesitation.
"If you're with me... I'll make it work somehow. I'll help you hide your ability. If you tell me what it is, I'll help you pass."
A hand extended toward me. Pale, slender, elongated. The delicate hand of a pretty girl.
"So, yeah. ...Won't you go to the academy with me?"
Why was this? She was only talking about the academy, but it felt like a love confession.
This is totally a trap.
If I took that hand right now... It wouldn't just be the academy. We'd end up at the wedding altar together, wouldn't we?
"……."
I shoved the stray thoughts aside. For a confession this serious...
I had to answer seriously. Without taking her hand.
"Sorry."
"……."
"Thanks for the offer. I'm really touched that you think of me that much."
"...Then why?"
"I'm not like you."
I confessed back without thinking. Though mine felt more like spilling a long-hidden truth.
"I don't burn with passion to achieve something like you do. I don't have that drive to push through the anxiety."
"You don't need that. I just need you there."
"No. I can't accept that."
I shook my head. I appreciated her offer. Was it because I'm her childhood friend? Or something more? Either way, it touched me deeply.
But my answer was no.
With my mindset, I'd just hold her back.
I'm an outsider in this world. My sense of self never forgot that, not for a second. So I had no strong attachment to life here.
Which college? What job? What kind of person? Nothing ignited passion in me...
I always drew a line inside. So if I went along with Sera's request like this—
That would be the real insult to her.
Sera's too good for someone like me.
I realized it again. Lee Sera wasn't the type to stay by my side. She deserved a wider world, better people. A dazzling delinquent girl too precious for a loser like me.
So I refused.
"Yeah. ...I get it."
Sera lowered her hand. It wandered aimlessly near her waist. Seeing it, I almost blurted out "never mind" on impulse.
She's driving me crazy.
Why did she shake a guy's heart like this? So damn pretty.
"Hah—"
Lee Sera took a deep breath. Like she was packing away all regrets and sadness at once. Then she exhaled—
And smiled.
"Okay. Got it."
Clean closure. Considering my situation, not forcing her views. It was the charm of Lee Sera I loved.
"Then let's have a blast until the school trip ends. No time like the present, right?"
"Sure. I'm not against it."
"Heh heh. You'll regret saying that. 'Not against it,' huh? Your own words?"
"...What are you plotting?"
"I'll tell you tomorrow. Hehe. Look forward to it."
Then Sera walked past me. The sun was setting—it was about time to head back. I followed behind her.
A brief silence. Serious confession, serious refusal. Neat agreement.
But even a smooth resolution leaves a bit of awkwardness. Unable to bear the quiet—
Sera suddenly turned, pouting.
"But Sihoo, that's too much."
"What is?"
"Even so, you could at least tell me what your ability is. Hiding it even from me?"
"Hmm."
"It's unfair— Even though we're childhood friends— People would think we're strangers—"
"...Fine. Fine."
I let out a big sigh. I'd planned to keep it hidden, but no helping it now. Refusing this might really upset her.
As her pathetic childhood friend, I should compromise this much.
"I'll tell you before summer vacation. That much, sure."
"Really? For real?!"
"Yeah. But don't tell anyone else. This is a real promise."
"Yeah, obviously! I'll keep it no matter what!"
Sera bounced around excitedly. It was so cute, a smile crept onto my face unbidden.
Suddenly— she stopped dead, face serious.
"But can you tell me before the school trip ends?"
"What?"
"I'm dying to know. I imagine what your ability is every night before bed."
That much? Like waiting for a Christmas present?
But whether I was stunned inside or not—
Sera was hyped on her own, fidgeting all over. She was probably fantasizing about me becoming an S-rank hunter already.
"Is it a Gift? If so, that'd be huge. You'd basically be guaranteed admission like me—"
"Ah. Okay, let's go. Roll call's gonna be late. Gotta save energy for the museum tomorrow."
No choice—I lightly pushed Sera toward the dorms. She was bouncing nonstop, full of energy.
But seeing her so thrilled that I'd share a secret... I felt a bit sorry, a bit happy.
Come to think of it, this is a first.
Revealing my Gift to someone else. I'd never needed to use it before. Hadn't even taken the hunter aptitude test, so not even sure if it's officially a Gift.
More importantly, I had zero plans to use it in front of others.
Just show Sera on the sly.
Absolutely no standing out. Yeah.
Near the Jeju Island Hunter Museum. In a spot untouched by people, masked men hid their bodies.
One asked the apparent leader.
"Boss. Is this really okay?"
"What about?"
"I get we're doing terrorism per Rewinder's policy... But detaining a bunch of high school kids? How's that gonna change anything?"
It was the common thought among the gathered men. Dark Hunters, Rewinder—the villain group aiming to return humanity to pre-New Era, before mana density spiked worldwide.
And these were Rewinder's low-level terrorists. So why come to Jeju Island for this?
They agreed with the ideology. That's why these plain criminals joined Rewinder.
But base work for the cause being detaining normal students to warn Korea? Questionable.
The boss scowled at his subordinate's doubt.
"Shut up. We just do what we're told."
"……."
"Besides, didn't you hear? One of the students we're targeting has a Gift. Don't know who, but that's probably why."
"Boss, about that... Can we really restrain a Gift user? Gifts are tough even for us, right?"
"Hmph!"
The boss snorted at the worry, tapping the gun beside him.
"One of these, and Gift or whatever, they'll take a hit for sure."
"True."
"And if that kid goes wild, just shoot the others. They'll panic like orphans who lost their mom."
"Got it."
The men's anxiety eased. The boss crossed his arms, lost in thought.
One Gift user can't stop us anyway.
Yeah. No need to worry. There wouldn't be more than one Gift holder anyway.